Texas may ban sports betting, but that is not stopping football fans from putting real money on Super Bowl LX. Across the state, Texans are turning to prediction markets, DFS-style pick'em apps and social sportsbooks that brand their products as "trading" or "games" instead of gambling. Platforms such as Kalshi, PrizePicks and DraftKings Pick6 have been promoted heavily this week, and users in Texas can buy contracts tied to the final score, player stat lines and even specific phrases broadcasters might use on air. The result is a legal gray area that channels millions of dollars into financial markets that look and feel a lot like sportsbooks while avoiding the label.
Millions Flow Through 'Legal Loopholes'
Prediction exchanges and DFS-style apps have effectively become a backdoor for Texans who want financial exposure to the big game. According to The Dallas Morning News, this kind of activity has surged in states that do not offer legal sportsbooks. The American Gaming Association estimates that more than 67 million Americans will place some form of Super Bowl wager this year and that U.S. legal sportsbooks will handle about $1.76 billion in bets. That figure excludes prediction-market trading, according to the American Gaming Association.
Prediction Markets Are Seeing Big Volume
Federally regulated prediction exchanges are posting eye-catching numbers this season. Industry trackers report that Kalshi’s Super Bowl-related trading reached about $167 million this year, roughly five times last year's volume, according to Covers. These platforms let customers buy and sell yes-or-no contracts on outcomes ranging from who wins the game to whether announcers mention particular storylines. Because they are overseen by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission rather than state gaming regulators, they can operate in states that prohibit traditional sportsbooks.
Regulators And The League Raise Flags
State and federal officials say these products blur the already thin line between finance and gambling. New York Attorney General Letitia James issued a consumer alert warning of "significant risks with unregulated prediction markets" and urging the public to tread carefully, according to the New York Attorney General's office. The NFL is not exactly rushing in either. Executive vice president Jeff Miller told lawmakers the league has no plans to participate in prediction markets because of unresolved legal questions and concerns about game integrity, as reported by ESPN.
What Texans Should Know About Risk And Liability
Texas law broadly outlaws betting on the outcome or performance of a game, and those who operate or promote betting schemes can face criminal exposure under state statutes. The key rules appear in Texas Penal Code §47.02. Consumer advocates note that prediction platforms and DFS-style variants often do not offer the same responsible-gaming tools that licensed sportsbooks provide. One analysis cited in recent reporting put the average Kalshi user return at roughly negative 22 percent after platform fees, according to The Dallas Morning News. For Texans who still want some form of legal action on the game, DFS pick-'em contests and certain social or sweepstakes-style apps are the options most commonly mentioned, though those products differ widely in their safeguards and how payouts work.
Bottom Line
In Texas, the Super Bowl betting boom is arriving through finance-flavored apps instead of licensed sportsbooks, and the gap between how companies market these products and how regulators view them remains unresolved. Treat any of these markets as high-risk entertainment, not investment. Before putting money on a contract, read the terms closely, look for built-in safeguards and check what self-exclusion tools are available.
